KR20070118475A - Process for managing a commodity and system therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

A method and a system for managing goods is provided to manage goods sales/stock and apply information change to marketing by attaching an RFID tag to the goods and detecting the information change of the goods with various kinds of sensors embedded in the RFID tag. An RFID tag(11) is attached to the goods, and is equipped with the sensors, a storage device string unique goods information, and an internal power supply unit. Detectors(12a,12b) detect a digital signal received from the RFID tag attached to the goods and transmit the detected digital signal of the goods to a host computer through the wired/wireless network. A host computer(13) is equipped with an information storing part(14) storing the goods information and collects the digital signal detected by the detectors through the wired/wireless network. The sensor is more than one of a pressure, temperature, acceleration, vibration, humidity, gas, density, flow, luminous intensity, volume, radiation, magnetic flux, and pH sensor.

Description

Merchandise management method and management system therefor {Process for managing a commodity and system therefor}

1 shows a schematic diagram of a store to which a product management system according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

<Brief description of symbols used in the drawings>

11: RFID tag 12a, 12b: reader

13: host computer 14: recording device

17: stand 18: dressing room

24: store entrance

The present invention relates to a method and system for managing a product. Specifically, after attaching an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) tag having various functions to various industrial products including clothing, the physical change applied to the RFID is sensed. The present invention relates to a product management method and a system for applying the same by detecting a preference of a product and using it as various marketing materials.

In general, an RFID system refers to a technology capable of exchanging and processing such information by attaching an electronic tag to a thing and delivering the information recorded in the tag to a server in real time through a wired or wireless network. Compared to barcodes or smart cards, it has excellent characteristics, such as less damage, it is possible to read multiple tags simultaneously at high speed, without having readers access tags directly, and there are no obstacles between tags and readers. It can be read even if it exists, can be read and written, and reused, so that it can be used in various fields. Currently, it is widely used in many business fields, for example, inventory management, automatic inspection, receipt and exit management, and counterfeit identification of specific items. have.

Basically, RFID tag technology can be divided into passive, semi-active or active. In the passive tag technology, the antenna supplies power to the memory elements in the tag, and the tag returns the information stored therein in response to the magnetic tag and the radio wave. For example, low frequency RFID systems (30KHz to 500KHz, and 13.56MHz) are mainly used in short transmission areas of about 1.8m or less, while high frequency RFID systems (433MHz, 850MHz to 950MHz, and 2.4GHz to 2.5GHz) can be used at several tens of centimeters. It is used in the long distance transmission area of m. Semi-active tag technology has the same communication concept as passive type, but a sensor-driven power source such as temperature and humidity is embedded in the tag to sense ambient temperature and humidity and transmit it in communication information. Active tag technology uses the tag's own power source to extend the communication distance or attach sensors to convey the detected information in the communication information. In the case of active tag technology, the communication distance can be adjusted according to the usage situation, allowing it to be about 2m to several tens of meters.

Such an RFID system has an RFID tag attached to a specific article in the form of a chip and stores information on the article, an antenna that performs wireless transmission and reception with the RFID tag, and communicates with the RFID tag through the antenna to operate the RFID tag. It may be configured as a host computer equipped with a reader for controlling and an application for collecting and processing information of an RFID tag provided by the reader.

On the other hand, various products are displayed and sold in department stores, clothing stores, etc., but product management is mainly performed by hand, and customer preferences for products are managed by inaccurate recognition. In particular, in the case of new products, it is necessary to introduce new marketing strategies based on the response of new products to customers after the release of new products, and the necessity to investigate the exact response of customers to new products is gradually increasing.

The technical problem to be achieved by the present invention is to provide a product management method for examining the customer's response to the product.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a system for the product management method.

The present invention to achieve the above technical problem,

Registering predetermined information in an RFID tag attached to a product to be managed;

Recognizing, by the RFID tag, a physical change applied to the product;

Converting and transmitting the physical change applied to the RFID tag into a code stored inside the RFID tag;

Detecting the transmitted code in real time by a reader; And

And transmitting and recording the detected plurality of RFID tag information to a host computer through a wired or wireless network.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the product management method comprises the steps of analyzing the information recorded in the host computer through an application; And outputting the analyzed product status.

The present invention to achieve the above other technical problem,

An RFID tag attached to the product, the RFID tag having a memory element and a sensor on which the unique information of the product is registered;

At least one reader detecting a digital signal transmitted from the RFID tag and transmitting the detected digital signal of the detected product to a host computer in real time through a wired or wireless network; And

A product management system comprising an information recording unit in which unique information of goods is registered, and having a host computer for collecting digital signals of goods detected from the reader through a wired or wireless network.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the RFID tag may further include a built-in power supply.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the sensor is a pressure sensor, temperature sensor, acceleration sensor, vibration sensor, humidity sensor, gas sensor, density sensor, flow rate sensor, light intensity sensor, volume sensor, radiation sensor, magnetic flux sensor, and pH One or more selected from the group consisting of sensors can be used.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail.

The present invention is to manage the goods displayed in the store by employing the RFID system, in particular, to detect the unique information about the various products in the store, as well as to capture various changes such as physical changes, such as movement of these products It provides a product management method that converts it into a digital signal, transmits it, collects it, stores it, compares it, and analyzes it, so that it can be used as a basic data for analyzing customer preferences for the product.

The product management system according to the present invention is preferably implemented in various stores where products such as clothing stores, department stores, discount marts are displayed and sold, but is not limited thereto. Investigation of whether a customer responds to a new product is required. It can be used anywhere.

The goods management system according to the present invention is attached to the goods, the unique information of the goods is registered, RFID tag that can detect the physical change of the goods and convert it into a digital signal and then transmit; A reader for detecting commodity information, a digital signal, and the like from the RFID tag and transmitting the same to a host computer; The product information and the digital signal detected from the reader can be broadly divided into a host computer that processes, analyzes and analyzes the digital signal.

As physical changes applied to the goods, there are various physical changes such as movement, pressure, gas, temperature, and the like. For example, the movement of goods may be detected through an acceleration sensor provided in the tag. When the movement of the product is detected, it may be determined that the product has been moved by the customer, which directly indicates whether the customer is interested in the product. Therefore, by converting the motion of the product detected by the acceleration sensor into a digital signal and transmitting it to the host computer, it is possible to database the customer's interest in the product, which can be utilized as various marketing materials.

The RFID tag employed in the system consists of an antenna for transmitting and receiving information with a wireless chip including a memory element (non-volatile memory) for storing predetermined product information, and a logic element (processor) for information processing if necessary. It may be further provided. Such an RFID tag can be any active type that has its own power or a passive type that operates by using wireless power from a reader, and can be a low frequency system or a high frequency system in a frequency range, but has a high data rate. The system is more preferable, and as such a high frequency system, those having a frequency range of 433 MHz, 850 MHz to 950 MHz, and 2.4 GHz to 2.5 GHz are preferable.

Preferably, the RFID tag according to the present invention preferably has an active type having its own power in order to more flexibly process various signal values input from the sensor, and preferably has a logic element for processing the signal values. For example, the RFID tag according to the present invention includes a digital input terminal and detects a discontinuous change in voltage, current, or resistance of a sensor connected thereto. The voltage source and the current source of the RFID tag sensor may use a power source embedded in the tag. The sensor may be configured such as an electromechanical switch, a transistor, a hall effect element, or a phototransistor.

The RFID tag according to the present invention may also include an analog input terminal for detecting a signal of an analog sensor represented by various voltages, currents or voltage values, wherein the input analog input value is a part of the tag device. Converted to digital value by D converter. In addition, the analog input value may be converted into an on / off signal or a high / low signal by a voltage comparator. The voltage source and the current source of the analog sensor may flow from an external power source or use an energy source generated inside a tag. As the analog sensor, a thermocouple, a piezoelectric element, or the like can be used.

Values that can be detected through the sensor are values such as pressure, temperature, acceleration, vibration, humidity, gas, density, flow rate, light intensity, volume, radiation rate, magnetic flux, pH, and the like.

For example, when the RFID tag including the sensor is driven, the clothing store displays an interest in the clothing displayed on the hanger, and when the product is separated from the hanger, the acceleration sensor in the RFID tag attached to the clothing product is In response, a change in voltage or current is caused, and the change is transmitted to an input terminal in the tag, converted into a digital signal by a logic element, and then actively transmitted to the reader. The digital signal transmitted to the reader is transmitted to the host computer through the wired / wireless network, and the transmitted signal is collected, compared, and analyzed by the application in the host computer to be used as marketing material.

The product information or the digital signal contained in the RFID tag can further enhance security by performing data operation through a processor included in the tag. Further, it is more difficult to duplicate the RFID tag through the enhanced security processing. It becomes possible.

Product information may be recorded in the RFID tag, and such product information may vary depending on the product to be managed. Basically, the date of manufacture of the product, the product code, the area information on which the product is displayed, the product manufacturer, and the expiration date. Information such as prices and prices may be registered. In particular, the RFID tag is individually attached to each product, and a unique code is assigned and managed for each product. Such unique codes are given in the form of 64-bit, 96-bit, 128-bit, etc. according to the type and number of products, and as the type and number of products increase, a large amount of storage capacity is required.

The point at which such product information is recorded on the RFID tag can be recorded at the manufacturing stage, that is, at the time of shipment from the factory, in the distribution process, at the time of arrival at the store, or after displaying the product. none.

The information registered in the RFID tag can be registered in the host computer in the same way. This is used as basic information for later comparison and analysis, and is registered in an information recording unit provided separately in the host computer. In addition to the unique information of the goods registered in the RFID tag, the information recording unit of the host computer may register various types of information for integrally managing them, for example, whether to sell, return or fail. Such information may be registered and transmitted through a wired / wireless network from the time of shipment of the product to be produced, or may be registered collectively at the time of distribution or store receipt.

Meanwhile, a reader (reader or information detector) for detecting commodity information registered in the RFID tag is required. Any of the readers currently available on the market can be used without particular limitation, and may be wired or wireless. Any may be adopted and used.

The reader detects the product information contained in the RFID tag or the digital signal transmitted from the RFID, and simultaneously detects the product information contained in the several tags due to the characteristics of the RFID. Even if it is possible to detect in a short time, there is an advantage.

The reader may detect a digital signal of an RFID that is detected by a sensor and transmitted randomly according to the movement of a product, and is preferably driven in an input standby state.

Several readers may be installed depending on the number of goods, and are responsible for a specific area affected by the intensity of the frequency. As a result, the store interior can be zoned into several areas that fall within the range of the reader.

Using this principle, it is also possible to track the movement path of goods. For example, if there is a separate area such as a dressing room in a clothing store, it is possible to install a separate reader in the dressing room that is distinct from the reader in the store, and then detect the movement of goods moved to the dressing room. Do. In this case, rather than a simple visual interest in the product in the store, it is possible to use as a variety of marketing materials by analyzing what is the preferred product.

The product information or digital signal in the RFID tag detected by the reader is transmitted in real time to the host computer, which is performed through a wired or wireless network, and the host computer can be a peer-to-peer or a server-client method. It is possible to quickly transmit information to an adjacent wireless terminal or the like.

The host computer may receive the product information and the digital signal detected from the reader and analyze the product information to determine whether a particular product is of interest or preference.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 shows a schematic diagram of a store 21 to which a merchandise management system according to the present invention is applied, each product having an RFID tag 11 attached thereto, and unique information of a product transmitted from the RFID tag 11 and / or Alternatively, readers 12a and 12b for detecting digital signals are provided in specific regions. Here, the reader 12a installed in the shop and the reader 12b installed in the dressing room 18 are shown. There is also a host computer 13, a recording device 14, and an output 16 to which information detected by the readers 12a and 12b is transmitted.

Referring to the product tracking management method according to the present invention with reference to Figure 1, first, in-store 21 reader 12a is provided, connected to the host computer 13 via a wired or wireless network to host the information of the RFID tag 11 The product information database 14 in the recording device 14 of the computer 13 can be registered.

In addition, the RFID tag 11 may be attached at the time of shipment of the product or when the store 21 is received, and since the RFID tag 11 has a memory device, desired information set in a format corresponding to each store 21 is recorded in advance. can do. Such a recording process may be performed at various points such as when the product is shipped from the factory, when the product is received, when the inventory is managed, or after the product is displayed. As described above, the information stored in the RFID tag 11 is all information related to the product, that is, the case of clothing, for example, product type, product code, size, color, price, date of manufacture, producer, and the like. It is possible to record a large amount of information, such as manager information associated with the store 21. Such a recording method can be used without any limitations known in the art, and there is no particular limitation.

When the physical change is applied to the product, the information recorded on the RFID tag converts the physical change into a digital signal and then transmits the information to the readers 12a and 12b together with the digital signal. This is recorded in the form of a database in the information recording unit 14 of the host computer 13 through the readers 12a and 12b as described above.

The RFID tag 11 attached to the merchandise basically stores the unique information of the merchandise, and simultaneously converts various pieces of information obtained through a sensor provided in the tag 11 into a digital signal, which is actively used by the reader 12. Will be sent to. This specific mechanism has already been described above.

In the situation where such a management system is operating, in the case of the apparel product shown in FIG. 1, when a customer shows interest in a specific product and separates it from a hanger, the apparel product is detected by an acceleration sensor provided in the tag 11. This is converted into a digital signal through the logic element in the tag and transmitted to the reader 12a. The transmitted information is sent to the host computer 13, databased and managed by the application.

Similarly, when the customer moves the clothing product with the tag 11 attached to the dressing room 18 to try-on, a separate reader 12b installed in the dressing room detects this to determine whether to move to the dressing room. This will be used as a separate marketing material. In this case, the reader 12b provided in the dressing room 18 needs to limit the radio receiving range to the inside of the dressing room in order to prevent radio interference with other clothing products placed in the store. It is also possible to block the various radio waves from the outside by adjusting the output range, etc. or by installing a radio wave blocking device outside the dressing room.

Product management method and system according to the present invention by using the RFID system, as well as sales management and inventory management of the goods, by using a variety of sensors provided in the tag to detect the change information of each product and database it, It can be usefully used as marketing information.

Claims (6)

Registering predetermined information in an RFID tag attached to a product to be managed; Recognizing, by the RFID tag, a physical change applied to the product; Converting and transmitting the physical change applied to the RFID tag into a code stored inside the RFID tag; Detecting the transmitted code in real time by a reader; And And transmitting and recording the detected plurality of RFID tag information to a host computer through a wired or wireless network. The method of claim 1, Analyzing information recorded in the host computer through an application; And The product management method further comprises the step of outputting the analyzed product status. The method of claim 1, The RFID tag is one or more selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, an acceleration sensor, a vibration sensor, a humidity sensor, a gas sensor, a density sensor, a flow rate sensor, a light intensity sensor, a volume sensor, a radiation dose sensor, a magnetic flux sensor, and a pH sensor. A product management method comprising an active sensor having a sensor. An RFID tag attached to the product, the RFID tag having a memory element and a sensor on which the unique information of the product is registered; At least one reader detecting a digital signal transmitted from the RFID tag and transmitting the detected digital signal of the detected product to a host computer in real time through a wired or wireless network; And And a host computer for collecting the digital signal of the product detected by the reader through a wired or wireless network. The method of claim 4, wherein The RFID tag further comprises a built-in power supply. The sensor of claim 4, wherein the RFID tag includes a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, an acceleration sensor, a vibration sensor, a humidity sensor, a gas sensor, a density sensor, a flow rate sensor, a light intensity sensor, a volume sensor, a radiation sensor, a magnetic flux sensor, And at least one sensor selected from the group consisting of a pH sensor.

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